


Sun, Sand, and Spice

by SithInquisitor



Series: Star Wars Short Stories [1]
Category: Star Wars - All Media Types
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-05-13
Updated: 2018-05-13
Packaged: 2019-05-06 07:36:50
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 876
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14637156
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/SithInquisitor/pseuds/SithInquisitor
Summary: The first of what might be a few Star Wars short story fanfics. Introduces the characters of Second Lieutenant Gale Rau and the Trandoshan named Delkai.Galactic Civil War (0 A.B.Y - 4 A.B.Y.) (After the Battle of Yavin)  (A New Hope till Return of the Jedi).The Rebellion has scored its first major victory against the Galactic Empire, destroying the planet-shattering Death Star. With new allies, resources, and morale higher than ever, the Alliance seems poised to dethrone the Emperor and his immense regime. The Imperial War Machine, duly chastised for underestimating their opponents, mobilizes to eradicate the insurgents and restore order to the galaxy…





	Sun, Sand, and Spice

The port city of Anchorhead on Tatooine had seen better days. While it was still an important trade city and waystation between the desert world’s other major settlements, it had lost the strong lifeblood that had made it a popular spot in the bygone days of the old republic. The Imperial Admiralty probably preferred it this way: The quieter the port city, the less likely officers on leave were to get involved in troublesome entanglements. Gale Rau was not here seeking trouble. Well…not this time anyway. But given how seedy his surroundings were, it would not be unexpected if trouble found him.  
He walked casually through the sun-soaked streets in what he hoped was some unassuming plebian garb. He wasn’t about to broadcast his status as an imperial naval officer by wearing his uniform. He passed a variety of characters as he moved, from roving service droids to groaning dewbacks. It was easy to tell the difference between Tatooine locals and patrons simply moving through the spaceport. The former looked constantly sleepy-eyed and moved gingerly with joints and muscles that had been aging prematurely. The latter had put at least some degree of effort into their appearance and still had enough vitality to walk standing up straight.  
Before long, he reached his destination; a shanty pharmaceutical shop accessible via a thick red curtain in an alleyway off the main thoroughfare. The store was just a front however. Upon entering, he was greeted by the shop’s owner.  
“Well, well…” came the raspy Trandoshan voice. “I suppose it’s officially Lieutenant Rau now, isn’t it?”  
“You know it, Delkai,” Gale replied. “You helped the boys and I through some stressful times.” The Trandoshan chuckled.  
“I’m happy to know I can provide such an essential service to the soldiers who defend our prosperous galaxy.” The sarcasm in his voice was obvious, but Gale had expected nothing less. Delkai continued. “I see you found the place easily enough.”  
“It’s simple when one is motivated. I was lucky the captain chose this place for leave.” Gale invited himself to sit down opposite Delkai. “I would think your operation’s easier to carry out on Tatooine that Carida?”  
“The Hutts don’t like being subverted, but I keep them happy with the slave trade.” This was news to Gale. He thought he’d been dealing with your typical two-bit spice smuggler. Apparently Delkai was a more seasoned underworlder than the cadets had originally suspected. Gale did his best to hide his apprehension and keep the conversation on track.  
“Then you think you could get me some of the real good stuff?” Gale dumped 500 credits – his month’s salary – on the counter. Delkai pondered is request for a good ten seconds before giving a slight snort and retreating to a back room.  
“Wait here,” he said as he left. While he was gone, Gale examined the stuffy shop. It was lined with containers of various sizes marked by sloppy price tags. A pair of inactive gonk power droids sat gathering dust in the corner. A humble setting that served to conceal far shadier business. After hearing Delkai’s revelation about his role as a slaver, Gale couldn’t keep himself from speculating about the content of the back rooms. The Trandoshan returned shortly with a small package in his hand.  
“I consider it bad for business to do this out of the normal channels,” his reptilian voice rasped. “But since you came all this way, I’ll write it off as a graduation gift.” He passed the package over to Gale, who promptly unwrapped it. The paper fell away to reveal a just big enough block of Glitterstim spice.  
“You’re the best, Delkai,” Gale said, giddy. He wasted not a moment holding the spice under the ray of sunlight that was coming in through a hole in the ceiling.  
“Careful, kid.” Delkai cautioned. “They say that stuff makes you so loopy that you read minds.”  
“Don’t like people in your head, Del?” Gale teased.  
“You may not like what you find,” the lizard rebutted, his face curving into a sly, scaly grin. Gale ignored him and pulled the spice out of the light once it was ready. He brought it up to his mouth and licked the corner of it before taking his first bite. The started to feel the effect within the next couple minutes.  
“Whoa…” he sighed. “This is way better than anything you snuck us on Carida.”  
“That’s why it’s expensive. Though I suppose that’s more your problem.” Gale took a second bite and leaned back in his chair as the high washed over him. Before long he did actually feel like he had a kind of meta-awareness. He got an imprint of what the Trandoshan was thinking.  
“This stuff really works,” he said slowly, now properly under the influence. He stared at the dealer. “You think…I’m just a dumb, rich kid from the core...who…who’s just getting his first taste of the real galaxy.”  
“…and has no idea what he’s in for,” Delkai finished. To anyone else the words might have sounded threatening, but the temporary telepath could tell that the words did have some genuine, almost paternal concern behind them. Gale laughed, relaxed fully, and licked the delicious spice block some more.


End file.
